Genealogy Decodedhttp://genealogydecoded.com
Genealogy Speaker, Writer & ResearcherTue, 31 Jan 2017 01:47:26 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.8.168061650genealogydecoded/CFVshttps://feedburner.google.comThe Battle for Bounty Land – Webinar Recordinghttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/3-sgEc-fFBQ/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/08/13/battle-bounty-land-webinar-recording/#respondSat, 13 Aug 2016 20:57:52 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3112Hi Everyone, I had a great time last Wednesday evening presenting my class on The Battle for Bountly Land – War of 1812 to the Mexican American War. It’s a fabulous slice of American history and genealogy treasures well worth investigating. Legacy Family Tree makes the webinars available, free to the public for a week after […]

I had a great time last Wednesday evening presenting my class on The Battle for Bountly Land – War of 1812 to the Mexican American War. It’s a fabulous slice of American history and genealogy treasures well worth investigating.

Legacy Family Tree makes the webinars available, free to the public for a week after the event. So, you can listen to it at your convenience through next Tuesday. Follow the link here.

Here are a few of the very kind comments from those who attended:

Another AWESOME webinar – very meaningful – and will be very useful!!! Really enjoy the live immediate usage of presentation concepts and tools!!! THANKS TO ALL!!!

Beth really laid it out in an understandable and concise manner! I’m ready to research:-)

Beth was great! Gave new information I hadn’t heard previously. Thank you, Beth and Geoff!

Beth was terrific. She clearly explained the types of records, where to find them, and how to use them in conjunction with other records. Thanks so much.

Excellent presentation! This was the first webinar by Beth that I have attended. I will be looking at her other webinars in the Legacy library. Thanks again for a pleasurable and informative webinar.

If you enjoy this, please consider subscribing to the webinar series. There are almost 400 webinars in their archive including – now – five of mine!

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/08/13/battle-bounty-land-webinar-recording/feed/03112http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/08/13/battle-bounty-land-webinar-recording/Upcoming Webinar – The Battle for Bounty Landhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/3qRBweC9gNg/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/upcoming-webinar-battle-bounty-land/#respondSat, 23 Jul 2016 18:22:58 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3098I’ll be returning to the Legacy Family Tree Webinar stage for the fifth time on Wednesday, August 10th to present my class – The Battle for Bounty Land – War of 1812 and the Mexican American War on August 10th. This is a little-known story of how our ancestors literally had to fight to get benefits […]

]]>I’ll be returning to the Legacy Family Tree Webinar stage for the fifth time on Wednesday, August 10th to present my class – The Battle for Bounty Land – War of 1812 and the Mexican American War on August 10th.

This is a little-known story of how our ancestors literally had to fight to get benefits in the form of bounty land for their military service. There were winners and losers in the story, but the clear winner are the genealogists of today, who have a bounty of records because of this chapter in our history. Find military records, land records, migration stories, legal documents, and more.

I hope you’ll join me for this presentation and Q&A on this most fascinating, truly American story.

And did I mention it’s FREE?

All the details and registration form can be found here: http://familytreewebinars.com/webinar_details.php?webinar_id=376. While you’re there, please check out my other classes in the Legacy Family Tree Webinar Archives.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/upcoming-webinar-battle-bounty-land/feed/03098http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/upcoming-webinar-battle-bounty-land/Northwest Genealogy Conference – August 17-20thhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/ewcQX73y1y8/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/northwest-genealogy-conference-august-17-20th/#respondSat, 23 Jul 2016 17:06:23 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3095I am delighted to be presenting at the upcoming Northwest Genealogy Conference in Arlington, Washington. I have the honor of presenting the opening day Free Beginner Classes – Introduction to Genealogy, Secrets of Ten Record Groups, and “If I’d Only Known – Beginner Mistakes.” These three classes are packed full of tips, tricks, techniques, and […]

]]>I am delighted to be presenting at the upcoming Northwest Genealogy Conference in Arlington, Washington.

I have the honor of presenting the opening day Free Beginner Classes – Introduction to Genealogy, Secrets of Ten Record Groups, and “If I’d Only Known – Beginner Mistakes.” These three classes are packed full of tips, tricks, techniques, and the all important resources to get you off to a running start in your genealogy research – or a great refresher if you have been at this awhile.

Additionally, I’ll be presenting two of my most popular classes – Problem Solving with Timelines and Problem Solving with FANs. Here you’ll find excellent tools to climb over even the most daunting of brick walls.

But to be sure, the conference isn’t about me. Headlining are three of the best genealogy speakers in the business – Claudia Breland, Lisa Louise Cooke, and Blaine Bettinger.

The Conference is August 17th to August 20th, hosted by the Stillaguamish Valley Genealogical Society at the Byrnes Performing Arts Center in Arlington, Washington. All of the details and registration forms can be found at www.NwGC.org.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/northwest-genealogy-conference-august-17-20th/feed/03095http://genealogydecoded.com/2016/07/23/northwest-genealogy-conference-august-17-20th/The 1797 New Madrid MO Census – with family specific noteshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/snuIvXGl3lY/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/12/1797-new-madrid-mo-census/#commentsTue, 12 Aug 2014 22:41:56 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3084I am doing some research on the New Madrid Earthquake, which struck in 1811 and 1812 in New Madrid, Missouri. In doing so, I came upon a 1797 New Madrid MO Census. Know that Missouri didn’t become a state until 1821, so this is early, early territorial days. And the census, while helpful and interesting, […]

]]>I am doing some research on the New Madrid Earthquake, which struck in 1811 and 1812 in New Madrid, Missouri. In doing so, I came upon a 1797 New Madrid MO Census. Know that Missouri didn’t become a state until 1821, so this is early, early territorial days.

And the census, while helpful and interesting, offered information like you might expect.

Pierre Derocher (family)

1 woman

1 girl

5 horses

20 cows

400 bushels of corn

Notice this family is named for male head of household, who isn’t counted among the occupants. There isn’t a count for “1 man.” And would the household have had slaves, they would have been counted separately, too. Again, this is super information especially for the territorial and pre-US Census era.

There are a half a dozen pages listing the 150 or so households in New Madrid at the time. And I was dutifully making prints one at a time from the microfilm machine, when I wondered what documents followed this census on the film. I was just curious.

FOOTNOTES!

Much to my surprise immediately following the census enumeration were footnotes. Each household had a sequential number following the name of the head of household in the formal enumeration. I thought, “that’s nice, they want to count the households.” NOOOO! Those numbers reference footnotes at the end of the census. The compiler took the liberty to offer the dear reader and joyful genealogist his 2 cents on what he knew about the family. He must have realized he was looking at history in the making!

Here’s what we learn about Pierre Derocher.

Pedro [Pierre] Derocher was a native of Nantee, Bretagne, France. In New Madrid he was captain of the militia, and acted as interpreter. He was a merchant. He married Rosalie Lafond, a daughter of Dr. Joe Lafond, who piloted Gen. Clark from Kaskaskia to Vincennes. He died at New Madrid and Capt. Robert McCoy was guardian and administrator of his estate.

Isn’t that just amazing! If that isn’t genealogy gold, I don’t know what is. Birth place – check. Military experience – check. Occupation – check. Wife’s name and her maiden name – DOUBLE check. Her father’s name, father’s occupation and birth place. Check. Check. Check. Where the blessed man died. AND if we weren’t excited yet – who the guardian and administrator of his estate – yes, he has an estate! – is.

The morale of the story is don’t stop at the end of the census. Turn the page. Look further. Don’t stop because you never know what you’ll find.

The 1797 New Madrid Census is on microfilm at the Midwest Genealogy Center, should your family have connections there and you’d like to take a peak. Alternatively, feel free to give me a shout. I’d be happy to look at my copies for you.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/12/1797-new-madrid-mo-census/feed/33084http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/12/1797-new-madrid-mo-census/Free Ancestry.com Research Guideshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/3C3XQq6yrF8/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/08/free-ancestry-com-research-guides/#respondFri, 08 Aug 2014 20:31:40 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3076The last I heard, Ancestry.com has north of 10 BILLION records online. Anyway you slice it that’s a LOT of records, and it’s certainly far more than my humble search skills can comfortably navigate. That’s why I’m tickled to see that they have introduced Research Guides. Tucked in their free section (no membership required) is […]

]]>The last I heard, Ancestry.com has north of 10 BILLION records online. Anyway you slice it that’s a LOT of records, and it’s certainly far more than my humble search skills can comfortably navigate.

That’s why I’m tickled to see that they have introduced Research Guides. Tucked in their free section (no membership required) is a portfolio of subject-specific research guides for anyone and everyone to use. The guides help you navigate the 10 billion records and tens of thousands of databases on Ancestry.com, which is great in and of itself. But they also give you subject-specific helpful insight such as history, key terms, abbreviations, and other information far and away beyond a simple description of a database.

Quaker Research

Guide to Finding Quaker Records by Ancestry

One of their research guides is the Research Guide to Finding Your Quaker Ancestors. It’s an eight-page, well written and designed cheat sheet to understanding the nature and complexity of Quaker research. Naturally, they explain who the Quakers are with a little blurb on Quakers and Slavery. Then they break down the nature of Quaker Records – the meeting hierarchy, they explain the birth and death registers and the marriage records. Then they explain the uniquely Quaker certificates of removal, disownments and apologies. Finally, there is a discussion of uniquely Quaker terms to help you unpack this world. I’m surprised that they don’t list the Quaker databases on Ancestry.com. Maybe there are just too many to list. (You can go to the SEARCH drop-down list and search the card catalog for the keyword “Quaker,” and probably get the vast majority of the databases.) Nonetheless, it is a very helpful guide.

Loyalist Research

Loyalist Resources on Ancestry

Another interesting guide is the one on Loyalists. It’s my understanding that one-third of the Colonists were actively supporting the Revolution, one-third were Loyalists (supportive of England), and the last third weren’t interested and had better things to do such as tend to their farms. No doubt there are plenty of Loyalist descendants looking for information and records. This guide offers a brief history to understand the Loyalists, then it gives an extended list of hyperlinked databases for your researching pleasure. Just click on the database of your choice and start searching. Just follow this link (Loyalist Resources on Ancestry) to get started.

These are just two of the guides you will find. There are about two dozen at the moment and it looks like they are adding more regularly. Here are a couple more.

Again, this is just a sampling. Go to the main page for Research Guides in the Learning Center – you can access it here – for the full and updated list. And check back often, as I mentioned they seem to be adding more and more. Indeed, you can even submit a suggestion for a new guide.

I’m glad to see Ancestry offering help navigating their vast collection to genealogists. I hope you’ll find these research guides helpful as I have.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/08/free-ancestry-com-research-guides/feed/03076http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/08/free-ancestry-com-research-guides/Missouri State Genealogical Association Conference | A Look Backhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/JLz05umBvwU/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/06/missouri-state-genealogical-association-conference-look-back/#commentsWed, 06 Aug 2014 20:22:12 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3073I had the pleasure of returning to speak for the third consecutive year at the Missouri State Genealogical Association Annual Conference in Columbia, Mo. last weekend. For the first time, I had the opportunity to give a workshop, which is a 2-hour presentation where the subject matter can be explored in more depth than a standard 1-hour […]

I had the pleasure of returning to speak for the third consecutive year at the Missouri State Genealogical Association Annual Conference in Columbia, Mo. last weekend. For the first time, I had the opportunity to give a workshop, which is a 2-hour presentation where the subject matter can be explored in more depth than a standard 1-hour presentation. My workshop was on problem solving using timelines and FANs (friends/family, associates and neighbors). Then on Day 2, I was first up on the docket with my presentation on The Battle for Bounty Land: War of 1812 & Mexican/American War. It is a fascinating and little-told piece of American History that offers a huge wealth of records to the genealogist. The Conference was held at the lovely Stoney Creek Inn, which offers ample room and very nice accommodations for the attendees.

The featured speaker was Josh (D. Joshua) Taylor, who was absolutely exceptional. I’ve seen a fair number of “national speakers,” and I would easily put him at the top of my list. He had excellent content, visuals and delivery. And his subject matter was broad and deep. I could have sat through another several presentations by him. One of the neatest things at the conference was the “after dinner entertainment” he provided. After dinner on Friday evening (the first of the two days of the event), he did a 30-minute presentation with Q&A afterwards on life behind the scenes of the genealogy shows of which he has been a part. You may know him from Who Do You Think You Are? formerly on NBC and now on TLC, and currently on PBS’s Genealogy Roadshow, soon to start filming its next season in St. Louis, Mo! Nonetheless, if you get a chance to see him at a conference, put him high on your selection list. The class will be well worth your time.

Well, it was a great experience both speaking and participating in the annual MoSGA (Missouri State Genealogical Assn.) Conference. I know they’ve already made plans to return to Stoney Creek Inn in Columbia, MO next year, and the featured speaker will be Judy Russell – the Legal Genealogist. Mark your calendars now for next August!

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/06/missouri-state-genealogical-association-conference-look-back/feed/23073http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/08/06/missouri-state-genealogical-association-conference-look-back/Kansas Civil War Soldiers Recordshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/ef4j3GKwNHw/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/19/kansas-civil-war-soldiers-records/#commentsSat, 19 Jul 2014 17:36:42 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3052The Kansas State Historical Society has a wealth of Kansas archives. Further, they have built an amazing, user-friendly website with links to indexes and databases that provide easy access to many of the collections – not the least of which are the Kansas Civil War Soldiers Records. I’ve listed and linked with their brief descriptions to […]

]]>The Kansas State Historical Society has a wealth of Kansas archives. Further, they have built an amazing, user-friendly website with links to indexes and databases that provide easy access to many of the collections – not the least of which are the Kansas Civil War Soldiers Records.

I’ve listed and linked with their brief descriptions to the Civil War soldier records indexes they have available for free online.

Index to Kansas Adjutant General’s Report – The Kansas Adjutant General’s Report, 1861-1865, lists the names of troops who served in the Kansas volunteer regiments during the Civil War. This index includes the name, regiment and company, and place of residence for each soldier.

Kansas Civil War Militia Index – During the Civil War, the Kansas State Militia were mainly called upon to help repel Price’s Raid on the Kansas-Missouri border in October 1864. This index points the user to the ACTUAL muster roll pages, which have been digitized and saved online. Here’s my ancestor, Jonas (JC) Greenwood, on the muster roll (partial view only). It gives his unit, where he mustered (Topeka), when he joined and was discharged and his rank.

Jonas Greenwood – Kansas Civil War Muster Roll

Civil War Veterans in Kansas – This database currently contains over 28,000 names of Union veterans of the Civil War who lived in Kansas after 1865. The names are from rosters or reunion proceedings at the KSHS Library. Many of the rosters were based on the 1889 census of veterans that was authorized by the state legislature. The list of the sources included in this database is listed below. This information was input by KSHS staff and volunteers and includes the name of the veteran, the state in which he served, place of residence when the list was compiled and the source of information.

Kansas Members of the Grand Army of the Republic – The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a volunteer organization, with membership limited to Union veterans of the Civil War, that supported and advocated for veterans’ rights and pensions. This index to members of the GAR, Department of Kansas, is based on the membership lists from northeast Kansas GAR posts published in the 1894 state roster and the 1917 state roster, with additional names added from the annual reports and records of individual posts dating from circa 1880 to 1943. The index was created by donor Robert Wandel. The index currently includes about 100 of the more than 500 Kansas posts, mostly those in northern and northeastern Kansas.

If your ancestors lived in Civil War Era Kansas – or were on route elsewhere from 1861 to 1865, it’s worth your time to check out these databases. Who knows what you may find.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/19/kansas-civil-war-soldiers-records/feed/23052http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/19/kansas-civil-war-soldiers-records/1925 Iowa State Census | Secrets Revealedhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/-mqbjzyEXsA/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/15/1925-iowa-state-census-secrets-revealed/#commentsTue, 15 Jul 2014 20:40:07 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3042We are fortunate to have the US Censuses, which were taken every 10 years starting in 1790, for our genealogy research. We are even more fortunate if our ancestors lived in a state at a time when the state conducted independent censuses typically in the years ending in “5,” i.e. 1905, 1915, 1925, 1935, etc. […]

]]>We are fortunate to have the US Censuses, which were taken every 10 years starting in 1790, for our genealogy research. We are even more fortunate if our ancestors lived in a state at a time when the state conducted independent censuses typically in the years ending in “5,” i.e. 1905, 1915, 1925, 1935, etc. The information in the state censuses aren’t usually as detailed as the US Censuses; however, they are irreplaceable for locating a missing ancestor between US Censuses.

The 1925 Iowa State Census

With this knowledge as backdrop, I stopped dead in my tracks when I learned what the wonderful State of Iowa asked of its residents in 1925. On page one of each series of names you find the usual name, family members, relation to head of household, age, sex, marital status and by default the location. Really, pretty rich information for a state census.

Here’s Pietro Cervetti and his family in the 1925 Iowa State Census.

Pietro Cervetti – 1925 Iowa State Census – Page 1

Page TWO!

But lo and behold, if you turn the page there is more information on the family. There is a “Page Two” and sometimes a “Page Three” for each family surveyed in the census. Before you dismiss this as a head count of their cattle, which would be interesting but not worth getting too excited about, read on.

Page Two asks for “Place of Birth of Each Person Enumerated.” Okay, that’s nice. Then it asks for “Name, Place of Birth, Age, and Place of Marriage of Parents (of each person enumerated).” Wow. And the Census Takers said, “here, future genealogists, the gift of parental information all gift wrapped for you.” So, if you have ancestors, who lived in Iowa in 1925, go now – right now – to the 1925 Iowa State Census.

Here’s what you’ll find. Here is Page TWO for the same Pietro Cervetti.

Pietro Cervetti – 1925 Iowa State Census – Page 2

We learn that he was from Italy, and we learn his parents’ names are Pacifico Cervetti (Pietro named a son after him.) and Julia Madici, both from Italy. In all honesty, this was already known information, but this is a second source and it is in writing. But wait! It gets better. Remember, the census asks for this information for every respondent. So Pietro Cervetti provided the same information for each of his children, which would reflect the birth origins of he and his wife. Pietro was very helpful in that he didn’t give just “Italy” as his birth origin and that of his wife. No, he gave the home towns!!! Pietro is from Corsica, and his wife, Julia is from “Franel.” If that’s not worth the price of admission, I don’t know what is.

Where IS This Golden Census?

The good news is that Ancestry (www.ancestry.com) has the 1925 Iowa State Census digitized and indexed. (The indexing is for page one only reflecting your ancestor and not his/her parents.) So you can either access this through a personal subscription or through a library or archive, which offers access for free.

If your ancestors either settled in or migrated through Iowa in the mid-1920s, I would strongly encourage you to check out this census. Further, if you’re like me and dutifully found your ancestor in the census and only found page one, go back. Find the census again and turn the page. It’s well worth your efforts.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/15/1925-iowa-state-census-secrets-revealed/feed/23042http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/07/15/1925-iowa-state-census-secrets-revealed/Patterns in Family Naming Conventionshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/qde4kekoVPU/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/06/29/patterns-family-naming-conventions/#commentsSun, 29 Jun 2014 13:34:40 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3030My Dad was one of four boys in the family, which offered my grandparents plenty of opportunities to name them after male members of the family. So, I wondered who was named after whom. Here’s what I came up with. Robert William (left in picture)- I don’t know where “Robert” came from but “William” is the […]

My Dad was one of four boys in the family, which offered my grandparents plenty of opportunities to name them after male members of the family. So, I wondered who was named after whom. Here’s what I came up with.

Robert William (left in picture)- I don’t know where “Robert” came from but “William” is the boys’ father.

Francis Henry (right in picture) – “Francis” is the boys’ paternal grandfather. And “Henry” is the boys’ maternal grandfather. The funny thing is he didn’t go by either name. He was 12 pounds at birth and was stuck with the moniker “Tubby” for his entire life.

Richard Charles (my Dad) (bottom w/bow tie in picture) – I have no clue where either name came from. There are no “Richard”s or “Charles”s in the family. My guess is they named him after a family friend or a favorite priest. I do know that Dad said his parents considered naming him “James,” but decided it sounded like a chauffeur’s name, and they didn’t want him to become a chauffeur!

William Edward (top in picture) – Again, “William” is for the boys’ father. “Edward” was a popular name on his mother’s side, but there were none in the living generations. Not sure about this origin.

It’s an interesting mental exercise to think about where the names came from. But more importantly, it can be a terrific clue in genealogy research. If you see names repeat over generations you can have a little more assurance that you have the right children associated with the right parents. There is a terrific and extensive article on naming patterns on Genealogy.com. I would encourage you to check it out. You can find it here.

But before I leave this brief homage to naming patterns I have to tell you about my husband’s Uncle Morris. “Morris” is a huge name in the Foulk Family. You see it repeated over and over all the way back to the Revolutionary War Era. Apparently Dr. Morris Foulk, my husband’s uncle, was either very proud of the name or himself or both.

Here are the names of his children:

Jeffery Morris Foulk

Kenneth Morris Foulk

Richard Morris Foulk

I’m not kidding. He gave all three sons his name for their middle name.

Do you have any fun or interesting naming patterns in your family tree? I’d love to hear about them.

In the meantime, look to the given names for clues – and great stories.

]]>http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/06/29/patterns-family-naming-conventions/feed/23030http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/06/29/patterns-family-naming-conventions/Not the Same Ol’ Grandparent Pictureshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/genealogydecoded/CFVs/~3/Iyjr5_SBd8U/
http://genealogydecoded.com/2014/06/27/ol-grandparent-pictures/#commentsFri, 27 Jun 2014 22:35:16 +0000http://genealogydecoded.com/?p=3018I didn’t know my paternal grandparents. Unfortunately they passed years before I was born. So the only visual images I have of them are the pictures in family albums. And like most family albums there are the lovely wedding pictures, staged family pictures, and conventional, ready-to-be-framed anniversary pictures. All of which paint a very respectable, […]

]]>I didn’t know my paternal grandparents. Unfortunately they passed years before I was born. So the only visual images I have of them are the pictures in family albums. And like most family albums there are the lovely wedding pictures, staged family pictures, and conventional, ready-to-be-framed anniversary pictures. All of which paint a very respectable, church-going image of my grandparents. But then I found these pictures, which open a window to what must have been a whole other side of my grandparents that maybe their children didn’t even know about.

My paternal grandfather. Wichita, Kansas

This is my grandfather, William Francis (Bill) Watson. He was b. 1889, d. 1957 both in Wichita, Kansas.

I think the picture is very striking. It looks like it could have come out of a film noir movie or the Tennessee Williams play, The Glass Menagerie.

It was probably taken in the late 1910s or early 1920s as he sat outside a factory or warehouse in downtown Wichita. The photo adds personality and life to his story. At one point in his life he was a young man eager to make his way in the world.

This picture is of my grandparents, William Frances (Bill) & Cathryn Ernstmann Watson. They were married in 1915 in Wichita, so this was probably taken in the late 1910s or early 1920s. I believe it is outside of their home.

That’s a motorcycle they are on! I just don’t think of ” my grandparents” on motorcycles! And look at the cap and goggles he’s wearing. They look like a very cosmopolitan “fun” couple. Not unlike the picture above they seem to be ready to take the world by storm.

These are just two samples of the unconventional pictures I’ve found of my family members. I would encourage you to look beyond the formal portraits in the albums to see what treasures may be in store. They may very well add an interesting dimension to the lives of your ancestors.